Dissertations
Date of Award
5-2023
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (EdD)
Department
Educational Leadership
Advisor
Dr. Usen Akpanudo
Abstract
The purpose of this dissertation was to examine differences among years of undergraduate enrollment and sex on six aspects of learning preferences as measured by the Student Learning Orientation Questionnaire for traditional undergraduate students at a private university in south Central United States. The theoretical framework used for the study was Knowles’ andragogy theory. Contextual considerations for enrollment, academic assistance programs, remediation, and accelerated college credit effects were addressed for undergraduate students. A convenience sample of 357 students was used, placing students into one of eight groups, based on the number of years of undergraduate enrollment and sex. Data from the groups were analyzed using 4 x 2 factorial ANOVAs. A significant interaction was found between Years 3 and 4+ and the sexes on the purpose of education subscale. Significant main effect differences were found between the years of undergraduate enrollment on three of the six hypotheses. Significant main effect differences were also found between the sexes on four of the six hypotheses, all with female means higher than male means. The findings support literature that female students are more andragogically oriented than males, students in lower-level coursework tend to require a higher level of support, while students in higher level courses desire to experience practical learning application. Faculty working with emerging adults and teaching at various levels of coursework would benefit from learning various teaching methods to provide appropriate academic and nonacademic support.
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Recommended Citation
Wright, Karen, "Orientation to Andragogical Learning by Emerging Adults in Undergraduate Education" (2023). Dissertations. 78.
https://scholarworks.harding.edu/hu-etd/78
